


True silver

by Ronile



Category: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Asexuality, Friendship, If the doors aren't in it is it even a Celebrimbor/Narvi fic?, Jewelry, Matchmaking, Multi, The doors of Durin, The good kind for a change
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-24
Updated: 2018-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-27 10:31:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14423514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ronile/pseuds/Ronile
Summary: Narvi's family suggest that maybe she might like to marry. Narvi is less than enthusiastic about the idea.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Female Narvi as always inspired by the amazing Determamfidd.

Narvi stomped into the room, her heavy hob-nailed boots loud on the flagstones. She slammed the door behind her, and collapsed into her favourite chair.

“Good day then?” Asked Celebrimbor.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“As you wish.” Celebrimbor turned back to his drawings, and began to count down in his head. 5… 4…. 3… 2… 1…

“They just won’t leave me alone!” Narvi practically exploded. Celebrimbor hid his smile, it was the same every time. Narvi liked to pretend that she was above the sort of problems normal people dealt with, but if you let her, she could moan with the best of them. “They invited another one over to dinner last night.”

“What did you do this time?” Asked Celebrimbor, genuinely curious. He should have known this would be it. Ever since Narvi had turned 100, her parents had taken to inviting a different young dwarf to dinner every week in the hope that their daughter would take a liking to one of them. So far their hopes had been in vain.

Narvi kicked off her boots and flung them across the room with rather more than the necessary force.“Oh I just gave him a lecture on advanced geometry, it worked a treat. That’s the thing about most of these idiots, they’ve been brought up on nothing but history and politics. When I start talking maths at them their little brains just shut down.”

“Narvi?” Celebrimbor stood up and tentatively placed a hand on her shoulder. He felt her deflate under his hand.

“I'm sorry. I know they mean well, and it wasn't his fault, but they just don't get that I. am. Not. Interested.”

“Perhaps if you found someone yourself, they might leave you alone?”

Narvi gave him a long, hard glare.

“Or perhaps not.”

“I consider myself married to my work, as you very well know, and as they should too.” She sighed. “How do you avoid this Khel? You’re a great lord of your people, there must be pressure on you to marry?”

“It has been suggested a few times. However after a century or two my stubbornness won out and they have since left me in peace. Producing an heir is after all not quite such a necessity for me.”

“That’s what I don’t understand! My brother has been married fifteen years now, little Orin is turning nine next month, and Ezri is pregnant with their second. The family line is secure, so why can’t they leave me alone?”

“They just want you to be happy Narvi.”

“I am happy!”

Celebrimbor raised an eyebrow.

“Generally speaking!” She collapsed further into the chair. “What do I do Khel? Sometimes I wish there was someone, just so they would shut up and leave me alone.” Narvi froze. A wide grin slowly formed across her face. “Everyone knows that once a dwarf’s heart is made up, there’s no changing it. So I just have to make something up, tell them I’m in love with someone who is guaranteed to be completely uninterested.” Slowly she turned to look to him. “Someone like you.”

By the time he realised she was serious, it was too late.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

“Lord Dorin?” The dwarf jumped, suddenly pulled from his thoughts. Erestor watched him curiously. “Are you well? You seem a little distracted this morning.” Erestor wasn’t sure if he was overstepping his bounds by asking this, but he liked to think that even if they weren’t exactly friends, he had enough of an understanding with the dwarf that Dorin would not be offended. As their two kingdoms drew closer together, the pair often found themselves working together in their capacity as advisers to their respective Kings.

“I’m sorry Erestor, I was just thinking about my daughter. To tell the truth, I’m worried about her.”

“Is she ill?” Asked Erestor, and immediately chastised himself for his bluntness. He really wasn't good at this.

“Not exactly.” Dorin sighed. “Do you promise I have your strictest confidence?” Even as he said it he wasn't sure if he was doing the right thing confiding in the elf, but desperate times called for desperate measures.

“Of course.”

There was a long pause before the king spoke again.“Erestor, have you ever heard of a dwarf falling in love with an elf?”

Whatever Erestor had been expecting, this was not it. He responded before the question had really registered. “I can honestly say I have not.” He tried not to look as shocked as he felt, but was not sure he had succeeded. This suspicion was confirmed when Dorin laughed.

“There’s no need to look quite so offended Erestor.” He sighed. “But I can’t say I expected anything different. This is so different from everything I know. I just don’t know what to do, if indeed there is anything that can be done. My daughter has confided in me that she believes herself to be in love with an elf. A love which she is sure is hopeless. And to tell you the truth I’m not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing. Why must things be so complicated?”

Erestor hesitated for a long moment before he spoke. A memory that had been tugging at the back of his mind had finally pushed its way to the front. It had only been a rumour, he had not been close enough to his lord at the time to know if it was true, but it seemed relevant now, and perhaps the knowledge of it would give Dorin some comfort. “I have never heard of a dwarf falling in love with an elf before.” He said slowly. “But I have heard of the reverse.”

Dorin looked up at him in amazement. “Are you serious?”

“You must promise to never speak a word of this beyond this room.”

“Of course.”

“I do not know the details, but I do know that a few years ago there was some pressure on our lord to marry. Rumour has it that he confessed to being hopelessly in love with a dwarf who spurned all of his advances. It is well known that elves love only once, as I believe do dwarves, so the was matter never spoken of again.”

The king’s mouth was wide with shock. “Does the rumour name this dwarf?” He asked, hardly daring to believe it.

“Not to my knowledge.”

“Erestor.” Said Dorin. “Did lord Celebrimbor have very good reason to believe that the dwarf did not share his feelings?”

“I can only assume he did.” Said Erestor, not really sure where Dorin was going with this.

“Stupid. Stubborn. Fools!” Dorin shouted, jumping out of his chair suddenly. “Don’t you see? Narvi is in love with Celebrimbor! And he loves her back. How did we not see this? They spend so much time together. I’m not the only one who has noticed and thought it a little odd. Now we finally know the truth.”

Erestor’s eyes went wide. “They… You… I…” He closed his mouth and tried again. “If you’re right, what do we do?” He was at a total loss, this was not a situation that any of his political training had prepared him for.

“Well.” Said Dorin, thinking hard. “Is it really so bad if they are in love with each other? I mean, clearly it's insane, but Celebrimbor is a lord, and Narvi is a lady. From a political standpoint you could say it’s the best match one either of them could make.”

“But it’s completely impossible!” Said Erestor. “Such a marriage has never taken place. Our peoples may be closer now that at any time in history, but this would be too much even for them to accept.”

“You're not wrong.” Said Dorin. “But if we're right about this, and I’m sure we are, it’s going to happen sooner or later whether we want it to or not. The heart of a dwarf is a stubborn thing indeed.”

“You're not going to try and stop it?”

“What would be the point in that? In fact, I think I will do quite the opposite.”

“What are you suggesting?” Asked Erestor, now very worried.

“The obvious solution.” Dorin had an odd glint in his eye, and Erestor wasn’t sure he liked it. “We, my friend, are going to give them a little nudge in the right direction.”

 


	3. Chapter 3

Narvi opened the door to her workshop. It was late, and she rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she entered the room. Usually she would be in bed at this hour, but she had been kept up all evening grappling with the ithildin problem. Celebrimbor's work was beautiful as always, the hard part was adhering it to the stone doors in a way that would last. Eventually she had grown tired of all the ideas rattling about in her head, and decided she might as well get up and see if any of them worked.

Lost in thought as she was, it took her a few moments to figure out what was wrong. Her workshop was full of candles. The desk in the corner which was usually home to piles of books and papers was instead covered in food. In one chair sat Celebrimbor, clearly enjoying the feast.

“There you are, I was wondering where you had gone. My thanks for dinner, I hope you don’t mind me starting without you.”

Narvi’s mouth opened, then it closed. “No.” She said finally. “Where did all this come from Khel?”

He stopped eating. “It wasn’t you? I assumed you had anticipated a late night and sent for it.”

“No.” She looked around. “It was just here when you came in? No message or anything?”

“Nothing.”

“I assume from your general liveliness that it’s not poisoned?”

Celebrimbor lifted a hand to his face and wiggled his fingers. “It does not appear to be.”

“Huh.” They looked at each other. “Oh well, waste not want not.” Come to think of it she was rather hungry. She sat down at the other end of the table and took a bite of pie. It was really quite good. Perhaps it had been her parents? In the week since she had 'confessed' her feelings to them they had been unusually indulgent. The parade of unwanted suitors had stopped, and they had been going out of their way to make sure she was happy. Perhaps it was their way of apologising. As she finished the pie she looked around the room again, taking in the candles and the red tablecloth properly for the first time. Oh no.

“Khel.” She said slowly. “Does anything about this strike you as oddly… well, intimate?”

“No more so than any other evening we spend in here.” He said, looking around. “Although the candles are perhaps a little unusual.”

“Just a little yes. Some might say a little... romantic.”

There was a pause. Then they both burst out laughing.

“I didn't think you'd actually do it!” Celebrimbor looked around. “I assume then that this is the work of your family? What happened to the part of the plan where you tell them that I am not interested?”

“I did tell them, but dwarves are well known for our stubbornness. Perhaps they thought I hadn’t tried hard enough yet.”

“You seem to be taking this very well.”

“They’ll give up eventually, after all they have no reason to believe that you return my feelings. In the meantime, I plan to take full advantage of the free food.” She started on a piece of fruit cake.

“Narvi?”

“Hmm.” She said, through a mouthful of cake.

“Your father hasn’t been talking to any of my advisers recently has he?”

“He had a meeting with Erestor on Wednesday, why?”

“I think we might be in a little more trouble than we realise.”

“How?” She frowned at him. “Khel?”

Celebrimbor took a deep breath. “Some time ago I may have told an unwanted suitor that I was in love with a dwarf so they would leave me alone.” The words came out in a rush.

Narvi dropped her cake. “You did WHAT?!”

“Only the same thing you did! It was a long time ago, I honestly had no idea the rumor had spread so far.”

“Why didn’t you tell me? I would never have… oh Mahal.” She put her head in her hands. “If they’ve put two and two together and made five they’ll never leave us alone!”

“In their defense it does look an awful lot like four from where they're sitting.”

“Which means either we come clean now, or...”

“We get married.”

“Not funny Khel.” She got up and tried the door. It didn't move. “Have they locked us in here?”

“It would appear so.” Celebrimbor shrugged. “I can think of worse fates. You built the door, you can have us out of here in five minutes.”

“Five seconds.” Said Narvi. “But that's not the point, I can't believe they'd lock us in. What exactly do they think is going to happen?”

“Well you see Narvi, when a dwarf and an elf love each other... OUCH!”

“I'll thank you to never put that image in my head ever again.”

“You have to admit though, this is pretty convenient. We are locked in your workshop, with at least,” he looked at the heaped table, “two days worth of food, and nobody will disturb us for fear of what we might be up to in here. We can finally get some work done.”

Slowly Narvi lifted her hand from the doorknob. “There may or may not be a small ventilation hatch in that back wall. And I may or may not have a nine-year-old nephew who delights in secrets and is small enough to crawl through it carrying anything we might want.”

Celebrimbor grinned. “How long do you think it will take before they crack?”

Narvi pulled on a pair of leather gloves. “Not as long as it will take us my friend.” She picked up her hammer. “Not as long as it will take us.”


	4. Chapter 4

“Erestor.”

“Hmmm.” Erestor did not look up from his book. Glorfindel reached down and plucked it from his hands. 

“Where is Celebrimbor.”

“I was reading that.”

“Erestor.”

“I haven't seen him.”

“That is precisely the problem. Nobody has seen him in nearly a week.”

Erestor finally looked up. “A week?” 

Glorfindel nodded, his usually fair expression had turned grim. “Where is he Erestor?”

“I don't know why you're asking me.”

“Because you know something. I know you do.”

“Then I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'm afraid I am as clueless as you.” 

Far from dissuaded, Glorfindel sat down beside the other elf. “Erestor, how long have we known each other?”

Erestor shuffled away, once again putting space between them. “Depends how you count, a few hundred years, several thousand.” He shrugged. 

“And in all that time, have I ever not been able to tell why you're lying?” 

There was a moment of silence before Erestor broke. “Ok, I'll tell you.” He hissed, glancing around the empty library. “But you can't tell anyone.” Glorfindel's eyebrow rose. “He's locked in Narvi's workshop. Or at least he was when we left him.”

Glorfindel took a moment to process that, before settling on the word that made the least sense. “We?” 

“Myself and... Lord Dorin.” 

“Locked Celebrimbor in the Lady Narvi's workshop.”

“Yes.”

Glorfindel took a deep breath. “Dare I ask why?”

Erestor turned a delightful shade of pink. “It wasn't my idea! It was Dorin. He thinks... oh Eru, he thinks Celebrimbor is in love with Narvi, and this is the only way they'll figure it out.” 

“He thinks Celebrimbor is in love with Narvi.” Glorfindel repeated slowly.

“And she's in love with him.” Confirmed Erestor.

“And you agree with this assessment?”

“It does make a strange amount of sense, you've seen how much time they spend together. It does seem the most logical explanation.”

“So you locked them in Narvi's workshop for a week. Naturally, the most logical course of action.” Glorfindel smirked.

“They weren't supposed to be in there more than a day, but they just... didn't come out. You know how stubborn dwarves can be. So we did the only _logical _thing and left them to it.”__

____

____

“Surely they must have run out of food by now.” Glorfindel looked worried. “Are you sure they're alright?” 

“They're fine. Narvi could pick that lock in seconds if she wanted, and there's plenty of noise coming from the window. They just don't want to come out.”

“Noise?” Glorfindel lifted an eyebrow.

“Banging mostly.” 

Glorfindel made a rather undignified snorting sound, and Erestor, realising what he had just said, turned a deeper shade of pink. 

“I meant hammering! On an anvil!” But it was too late and Glorfindel's laughter grew louder than ever. Erestor hid his head in his hands. “You are such a child Glorfindel.”

“And you are too easy to tease! But come, I see now that our friends have arranged things quite to their satisfaction. Under the circumstances I can't say I blame them, but unfortunately this cannot be allowed to continue, else we will soon find ourselves leaderless.”

“I hate to admit that I agree with you.” Replied Erestor. “Come then, we will open the door and grovel no more than is necessary to persuade them to leave through it.”


	5. Chapter 5

Celebrimbor leaned back in his favourite armchair and watched the flames dance in the open fireplace. On the floor beside him Narvi was scribbling intently on one of the many sheets of paper which littered the stone flagged floor. She always preferred to work like this, quickly becoming frustrated with the limited space on a desk or table. She needed to see everything laid out together, her mind jumping from one diagram to the next, until suddenly she would see a connection that made everything fall into place.

Tonight it was once again the doors which occupied both of their minds. The idea had seemed simple enough at first, but as time wore on, the difficulty of what they were trying to do had become clear. The door needed to be usable by anyone who needed to pass, but at the same time keep out even the strongest of enemies. A key was no good, they would have to make thousands to give access to everyone who needed it, and it would only be a matter of time before some were mislaid and fell into the wrong hands.

Many of the sketches on the floor held elaborate mechanical diagrams, puzzles that would open the door when solved in the correct manner. Perhaps a certain stone twisted to just the right angle, then another that must be pushed. No. Something told Celebrimbor that they were going about this all wrong. It had to be simple. Simple enough that in a time of need even a small child could seek shelter in the mountain, but an orc, no matter how crafty, could not. 

“What are you singing?” The voice startled him out of his thoughts. He opened his eyes to find Narvi looking at him curiously.

“Sorry?”

“You were singing.” She said again. “What about?”

Celebrimbor's mouth fell shut. He hadn't even realised. He tried to remember the last time he had sung in the presence of another person, and found that he could not.“I apologise. I will stop.” 

“You don't have to. It sounded nice. I only wondered what it was.” She turned back to her papers, and did not see the look of shock that passed across his face.

“You liked it?” 

She looked up at him. “Yes, it was quite calming. Why are you so surprised? There is no need to be modest with me. Your people are known for your voices above almost all else.”

“Most elves are, which is why they rarely tolerate my attempts.” Said Celebrimbor. “I haven’t felt comfortable enough to sing with anyone else in the room for…” He looked embarrassed. “Well for a long time. I'm afraid to say it Narvi but I think I must be the only elf ever to be born completely tone deaf.” He hung his head in embarrassment. “You need not lie to spare my feelings.” 

There was a pause, then suddenly Narvi burst out laughing.“Sorry.” She wiped a tear from her eye. “I didn’t mean to laugh. Not at you I mean. It's just...” She started laughing again. “I wasn't lying. Your singing really does sound good, to me anyway.”

“Truly?” Celebrimbor tried to keep the disbelief from his voice. 

“Truly. Though I suggest you do not purchase a harp just yet. I'm afraid I too have a confession to make” She grinned. “I couldn't follow a tune if it danced before me wearing the king's finest robes. That’s why you never hear me sing either.” She looked a bit sheepish. “I'm sorry. I just assumed you would be a good singer, you have to admit it seemed like a safe bet.” 

“Indeed.” He smiled. “And now that I know your secret I think it is only fair that I ask, would you sing to me in return? I promise to have no idea if it sounds anything like it should, but to very much enjoy it anyway.”

She laughed. “I suppose there is some sense to that, but you must not tell a soul.”

“On my honour as an elf.”

Narvi thought a moment before settling on one of the few songs she knew. It was a children’s nursery rhyme, and she felt silly singing it at her age, but it was in Khuzdul, so at least Khel wouldn't know. Quietly and haltingly she began to sing, and in spite of herself, she smiled at the memories the words invoked. 

“That was beautiful.”

“No it wasn't.”

“Most likely you are correct, but nonetheless I enjoyed it. What did the words mean?”

“Surely you cannot expect me to give up all my secrets in a single evening.” She smiled at him. “But perhaps if you explained your own song...”

“You strike a hard bargain my friend. It was a song about the beauty of starlight reflecting on the snowfall in winter.”

Finally Narvi put her pen down and turned to face him fully. “I think that is the most elvish thing I have ever heard in my life.”

“You did ask.”

“That I did, and promised an answer in return. The simplest translation of my song would be 'safe as stone'.” She looked embarrassed. “It is a nursery rhyme.”

“How very dwarvish.”

“As always.” She smiled again. “You really didn’t want to rip your ears off?”

“Not at all. I quite like them the way they are.”

“Unnaturally pointy?”

“Perfectly shaped, yes.”

“I'm pretty certain that that makes you the only person in Arda.” 

“And honoured to be, as always melon-nin.”

“My friend.” It was one of the few phrases of his tongue she knew. The solution hit her like a bolt of lightning.

“Melon.” She whispered, and grabbed at the nearest sheet of paper.

“Narvi?”

“Shhhhh! Thinking!” She waved her hand in his direction and Celebrimbor immediately fell silent. Just at that moment there was a knock on the door. “Thinking!” She yelled. The door creaked open and a white flag appeared in the doorway.

“We came to apologise, and offer a truce.” Came Erestor's hesitant voice from the doorway. 

“And if you do not leave now I will split you in half! OUT!” 

Erestor nearly tripped over Dorin in his haste to leave, but before the three figures could disappear Celebrimbor rose to his feet and silently stopped them just outside the door, which he closed gently behind them. “You have impeccable timing my friends.” 

“I'm sorry, we didn't expect her to be working.” Erestor said.

“You locked her _in her workshop _. What did you honestly expect to happen?” Celebrimbor looked at him astonished. Dorin opened his mouth, but before a sound could emerge Celebrimbor continued. “And if you get any ideas about locking us anywhere else, I will not be so patient next time. Do I make myself clear?”__

__“Yes my lord.” Dorin hung his head._ _

__“Good, now we will call an end to this nonsense and get back to more important matters.” And with that he turned back to the door and opened it just as a voice from inside called his name._ _

__“Khel? Good. Stand here and hold this.” The elf smiled and shut the door firmly behind him._ _

__From that day on there was a sudden drop in the frequency with which Celebrimbor and Narvi were disturbed in their work. If it had less to do with Celebrimbor's threats, and more to do with the fact that everyone in the surrounding rooms quickly vacated the entire section of the halls when they saw the two together, Celebrimbor and Narvi were completely oblivious. After all, to them, their duets were perfect._ _


	6. Chapter 6

The afternoon was drawing to a close as Celebrimbor and Narvi neared the top of the hill. 

“I promise you the view is worth it.” Celebrimbor called back to his friend, who was several paces behind. Narvi grunted in response and clutched her side. Silly elves with their ridiculous notions about _going outside _and _walking _. Still, she pushed on, and was relieved to see the trees part a short way ahead as the ground finally flattened out.____

_____ _

_____ _

Huffing and puffing she made a final dash to where Khel was now sat on an outcropping of rock, waiting for her. 

“Look.”

She turned, following his finger, and gasped. The entire valley was spread out below them, beautifully framed by a break in the trees. To the North the city of the elves nestled between the hills, and to the South-east the walls of Khazad-dum stood proudly in the evening sun. Between them flowed the river, which wound away out of sight to the South-west.

“I told you it would be worth it.”

She sat down heavily beside him and stretched out her aching legs. “Aye, you did, and you were not wrong.”

They fell into silence, watching the tiny figures of elves and dwarves going about their business far below. Time and time again Narvi found her eyes drawn back to the mountain walls, to the spot where she knew their doors stood, invisible for now but not for much longer. It had taken all day to finally lift the immense stone structures into place, flush against the rock which had been prepared so carefully to receive them. With their work finally done, all they could do now was wait. 

It was a strange feeling. Waiting on the edge. Knowing in her mind that all was well and the doors would work as designed. But in her heart, there would always be that voice of doubt. She shifted closer to Celebrimbor and wordlessly he wrapped his hand around hers, curled between them on the rock. 

____

____

“Peace Narvi. There is nothing to fear.” 

“No.” She forced herself to breathe out. Unconsciously her other hand found it's way into her pocket and began to fondle the object it found there. There would never be a more perfect moment than this. 

“Khel?”

“Hmm.” He turned to her.

“I have something for you. A gift, to commemorate the occasion.” She pulled the small box from her pocket and opened it to reveal a delicate mithril ring. 

Celebrimbor gazed down at it in wonder, entranced by the very same pattern he had so painstakingly carved onto their doors. “It's beautiful Narvi. Thank you.” He reached out a hand and then paused. “May I ask... mithril?”

Narvi nodded. “Not silver, or gold. I know the customs of your people, and I would not seek to disrespect them.” She smiled at him “May I?” 

Celebrimbor nodded, and gently she picked up the ring and slipped it onto his finger. “It might not be love the way others feel it, but there's nobody I'd rather have at my side.”

Celebrimbor swallowed, overcome for a moment with fondness for his dearest friend. “Thank you Narvi.” He whispered. There was a moment of quiet as the sun began to sink below the horizon. 

“Narvi.”

“Yes.”

“I also have something for you.” He reached into his satchel and pulled out a soft velvet bag. A patterned mithril hair bead fell into his palm, and he passed it to her.

“The star of Feanor.” She gasped.

He nodded. “And the hammer of Durin. I am also familiar with the customs of your people. I confess I had feared it would be too much, but you have given me courage this night.”

Wordlessly she tuned the bead over between her fingers, struck dumb by the strength of the feelings it invoked. “It's beautiful Khel.” 

“May I?” He gestured to her hair.

Silently she nodded.

Gently he secured the bead onto the end of one of her braids. “I hope this will be only the second of many more great works to bear that mark.”

Narvi fingered the bead gently, “It will be.”

The sky grew darker around them. The chattering of the ravens grew louder, then faded away. Soon the only light came from the moon, and slowly but surely, the outline of the doors grew clearer.

“It's time.” She whispered. Together they descended from the hilltop to the valley below and stood before the mountain walls. The writing of the doors was now clear for all to see, a silvery beacon in the darkness. 

Rows and rows of silent faces watched them pass as they approached the doors, so firmly shut that not even a crack was visible between them. Finally they stopped, and stood for a moment in silence and awe. To see something they had worked on for so long finally complete, and so perfect, it took Narvi's breath away. Without thinking she reached out, and Celebrimbor's hand met hers halfway. Together they finally broke the silence, a single word in two voices.

“Melon.” 

The doors opened.


	7. Epilogue

“Right. Come on, bed time.” Glorfindel strode over to where his companion was nose deep in a book and glared down at him in his most menacing manner. His companion did not appear to notice. He raised his voice another notch. “Erestor!”

“Hmm?” The elf in question did not raise his eyes from the pages.

“Once again it is past midnight and you are still here.”

“As, my friend, are you.” 

“I am here because for some unknown reason I apparently care for your well being, but if you do not begin to heed my advice that may change rapidly.” 

With a sigh Erestor closed the book, carefully marking the page with a scrap of paper. “I do not understand why it is a problem that I prefer to work in the evenings when I can have some peace and quiet. Or at least used to be able to, before a certain elf decided to make such an unnecessary fuss.” 

Glorfindel took a step back and raised his hands. “You know what? Fine. I give up. Continue to sleep through breakfast and yawn through lunch if that is your wish. I wash my hands of it.” He turned on his heels and strode to the door, only to find it would not open. He rattled the handle. Brilliant, of all the times for the door to stick, it would be when he needed to make a dramatic exit. 

“Glorfindel!” Erestor's voice came from behind him, and reluctantly he turned to face the other elf. “I am sorry. Truthfully I did not realise it had grown so late, I am only frustrated with the progress I have failed to make today. Peace?” He held out his hand. 

Glorfindel felt his anger fall away at his friend's earnest expression. “Always, and for my part I apologise for losing my temper with you.” He took the proffered hand and grasped it gently for a moment.

“Accepted. Come, let's go.” Erestor reached past Glorfindel and tried the door handle. It still did not open. Somewhere beyond the keyhole he heard a snigger. He stopped. “Glorfindel.” He said tentatively. “Remember how you said you forgive me?”

“Yes?”

“I may need to beg your indulgence a while longer. It seems that revenge has finally been served.” He watched as realisation slowly dawned on Glorfindel's face. 

“I don't suppose you have another key tucked away somewhere?”

Erestor shook his head. “The library is so rarely locked, it seems wrong somehow to do so. So there has never been reason for me to carry one.” 

“I see.”

“Quite.”

They stood in silence for a moment. Erestor was just considering that he might as well go back to his book when Glorfindel's voice startled him. “Don't you dare.”

Erestor bristled again. “I don't see why not, it isn't like there's much else we can do.”

“Since it is your fault we're in here I would think the least you could do is help devise a way out.” He strode over to the large window behind Erestor's desk and began to test one of the catches. He expected Erestor to follow him, what he didn't expect was for the elf to say. “You're right, this is my fault. So why are _you _here?”__

__Glorfindel stopped and turned to face him. “What do you mean?” He asked cautiously._ _

__“I mean that by rights it should be Dorin in here with me. This has nothing to do with you. So why are you here?”_ _

__Glorfindel shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant, but he could feel sweat beginning to prickle at the back of his neck. “I suppose this was easier. We spend a lot of time together.”_ _

__“I spend enough time in Dorin's office on business. It would not have been hard to take advantage.” The elf stepped closer, then another step. Glorfindel felt his breathing quicken. “No, I don't think that's it at all. I think there is a very good reason why you are in here with me, melon-nin. I merely wonder that I did not see it sooner.” He reached up with one had and traced a lock of Glorfindel's golden hair down the side of the elf's cheek. “If I am wrong, say so now.”_ _

__Glorfindel's breath caught, “You are not wrong.”_ _

__“Good.”_ _

__Erestor tasted like blueberries. On the other side of the room the door clicked quietly. Neither elf noticed._ _

__Dorin crept back down the hallway in silence, a smile on his lips._ _


End file.
